This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for barbecue pit cooking, and particularly to a new and novel masonry barbecue pit especially useful for smoke cooking. The pit is characterized particularly by a drip trough structure easily removable from the fire box portion of the barbecue pit and yet nevertheless having at least one size dimension having an extension into the chimney portion of the barbecue pit and serving as a separator for air flow.
The invention particularly provides a plurality of metal components especially designed for cooperative interaction with masonry components and fire brick features of the barbecue pit so as not only to permit convenient removal of portions desirably cleaned, at least on a periodic basis, but also to facilitate ease of mounting to allow for differences in thermal expansion as between the metal components and the masonry of the barbecue pit.
Masonry barbecue pits have heretofore been proposed including those of the movable or portable type as particularly contemplated by this invention. However, so far as is known, none have oriented various components in the unique relationship provided by this invention, whereby cracking of the masonry portion is substantially prevented despite the thermal expansion differences between that portion and the metal components, and whereby air flow is enhanced not only for combustion but for grease-smoked air to surround food being cooked in the barbecue pit and to pass in a circulatory manner or in a surrounding manner completely around an oven (such as a Dutch oven) immediately adjacent the fire pit portion. Contrary to prior practice, the oven of the barbecue pit of this invention is not in a more or less central location in a chimney.